Maria Kirilenko Мари́я Кириле́нко (RUS, Tennis)

Maria Kirilenko Мари́я Кириле́нко is part of the formidable array of Russian tennis players. Kirilenko turned professional in 2001. Since then, she has collected around $4.8 million in prize money, on top of her modelling and endorsements. 

Kirilenko at the 2009 U.S. Open. (Photo from Charlie Cowin)

With her tennis talent and good looks, Maria has the potential to follow the footsteps of the other, more illustrious Maria in the circuit.

To date, she has triumphed in five WTA tournaments and three ITF competitions. The right-handed Kirilenko reached her highest ever ranking of No. 15 at the WTA tour last May. She is currently the World No. 19. Maria won her first WTA crown in 2002, a year after turning pro. 

Her best ever finish in a Grand Slam tournament was the Australian Open quarter finals in 2010. She dueled against good friend Maria Sharapova in the second round and won 7–6(4), 3–6, 6–4. Kirelenko has also reached the fourth rounds of the French Open (2010 and 2011) and U.S Open (2011), and the third round in Wimbledon (2010, 2011, 2012).

Source:
Wikipedia Profile

Francesca Piccinini (ITA, Volleyball)

The Italian national volleyball team came to the Philippines in the late 1990's to compete in the FIVB World Grand Prix Volleyball players Maurizia Cacciatori and Francesca Piccinini stood out for their good looks and mean talent. Perhaps the visits by those high caliber teams did much to sow the seeds of popularity of Philippine women's volleyball.

   

Photos from Marziacrem87 and parmavolleygirls

Piccinini is a spiker for Italian club team Volley Bergamo, Francesca won Most Valuable Player (MVP) honors at the 2009-2010 season of the Indesit Champions League, the same year her team won the championship trophy.

She competed in three editions of the Olympic Games (Sydney, Athens, and Beijing). Piccinini was part of the Italian team that bagged World Championship gold in Germany back in 2002. 

Throughout her long international career, Francesca has won a total of two European Championship gold medals, a gold at the World Grand Cup Champions League, a gold at the FIVB World Cup.

Sources:
Wikipedia Profile
Italian League Profile

Godspeed, Gabrielle Anderson!

The U.S. Track & Field Olympic Trials is a cutthroat event. Only the top three athletes per event, provided they had met the required Olympic "A" standard, will be sent to quadrennial event. There are no exceptions, whether the athlete is a budding collegiate talent or an established Olympic champion.

Read: "Track Beauty of the Week - Gabrielle Anderson"

Middle distance runner Gabrielle Anderson stands out among the rest because she is a two-time cancer survivor. The University of Minnesota graduate has recovered fully from her battles with the Big "C," consistently running faster times the past two years.

Anderson has a personal best of 4:06.46 in the 1500m run, ranking her among the top middle distance athletes in Eugene.

Godspeed, Gabrielle Anderson!

Read more...

Yaroslava Shvedova Яросла́ва Шве́дова (KAZ, Tennis)

The display of raw emotion punctuates the pursuit of sport. I admire athletes who do not shirk away from their emotions, and instead display what they are feeling in a bluntly, honest way. Yaroslava Shvedova Яросла́ва Шве́дова is one of those athletes.

Shvedova at the Citi Open Tennis tournament. (Photo from Keith Allison)

After an injury-plagued 2011 season, the Russian-born Kazakh barged into the quarter-finals of the French Open. When she defeated Carla Suárez Navarro in the third round, Shvedova shed tears of joy. In a post-match WTA interview, she explained her reaction: "It has been so tough to come back after losing everything. I was so happy to achieve the same results as I did in my peak in 2010. I cried because it has been very hard work, but this makes all the hard work worthwhile."

The Kazakh went on to beat defending champion Li Na, but faltered against Petro Kvitova in the quarterfinals. 

Since turning professional in 2002, Shvedova has won one WTA and three ITF titles. In 2010, her ranking rose to as high as 29th, but fell after she succumbed to injury. She is currently ranked 65th overall, after her quarterfinals run in Roland Garros.

Sources:

Wikipedia

WTA interview

Liu Xuan 刘璇 (CHN, Gymnastics)

Liu Xuan 刘璇 is a retired Chinese gymnast. She now pursues a career in film and television.

 

Photos from china.com.cn and bagua.ifensi.com

Her curriculum vitae as a gymnast is impressive, to say the least. She had won a total of four Asian Games gold medals, on top of a lone silver medal. Liu reaped top honors at the balance beam at the 1998 Sabae World Cup, in addition to a bronze at the uneven bars. In her three appearances at the World Championships (1995, 1996, and 1997), Liu collected two bronzes and a silver.

Her reached the pinnacle of her career at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, where she topped the balance beam. Liu was also part of Chinese team that won bronze at the team event. The IOC nullified the performance of the Chinese team due to a failed doping test by one of the members.

Source:

Wikipedia

Tiina Lillak: Finnish Javelin Legend

When I was watching the javelin qualification rounds of the Helsinki European Championships, I noticed a prominent banner. Written in bold letters were the words: “Finland the Javelin Country.” Indeed, the javelin throw is a national past time in the Nordic countries. Of the sixty-nine medals awarded in the event since 1896, a staggering thirty-two medals had been won by troika of Sweden, Norway, and Finland. In fact, Finland had swept the medals twice in Olympic history.

Tiina Lillak circa 1983. (Photo from Jos Hendrix)

The Euro Sport announcers then went on to talk about a certain Tiina Lillak, and how she snatched the inaugural World Championships gold on her final throw – in front of thousands of ecstatic Finns.

Read more...

Angelique Kerber (GER, Tennis)

Angelique Kerber is a top-ranked, German tennis player. The 24-year old turned professional in 2003, and has won 2 WTA and 11 ITF titles. 

Kerber at the 2011 U.S. Open. (Photo from robbiesaurus)

She is currently ranked 8th in the world, the highest in her career. In Grand Slam tournaments, Kerber has performed best on the hard court and clay, having reached as far as the quarterfinals at the French Open and the semifinals at the U.S. Open.

She barged into the top 100 the same year she turned pro. It took some time, however, for Kerber to hoist a WTA crown. In 2010, she battled Mariana Duque Mariño at the 2010 Copa Sony Ericsson Colsanitas, but faltered in straight sets. 

The German's robust global ranking is a sign that she is nearing the peak of her game. True enough, she has proved her mettle, notching victories over 2011 French Open Champion Li Na, former top-ranked player Jelena Jankovic, and Caroline Wozniacki. Angelique finally triumphed at a WTA tour event this year. Despite being seeded ninth, Kerber took out the experienced Marion Bartoli in a three-set nail-biter. 

Source:

Wikipedia

Additional Link:

Kerber's WTA Profile

Godspeed, Darya!

According to Darya Klishina's (Дарья Клишина) Facebook page, Darya has been training in the Russian resort town of Sochi. Her status updates seem upbeat and positive. Judging from the training clip below, it seems as if Darya has shrugged off the ill-effects of the injury she sustained last year. 

Read: "Track Beauty of the Week - Darya Klishina Дарья Клишина"

The Olympic long jump competition will be tough, considering the fact that five women have jumped beyond seven meters outdoors this year. Darya, according to the IAAF statistics, apparently has not made her outdoor debut yet. Is she hiding her cards right up until the last possible moment? 

Read: "Darya Klishina: The Next Big Track & Field Star"

Darya en route to fourth place finish at the Istanbul World Indoors. (Photo from Erik van Leeuwen)

As the London Olympic Games near, the prospect of a nail-biting long jump grows more exciting with each passing day. 

Godspeed, Darya!

Christina McHale (USA, Tennis)

The young Christina McHale could be the United States' next big tennis star.

Christina McHale at a USTA event. (Photo from Charlie Cowins)

McHale is ranked 32nd in the WTA list, but has claimed the scalps of several illustrious names since turning professional in 2009. Christina had beated former World No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki twice, the most recent coming in Eastbourne this year. She had also triumphed against Svetlana Kuznetsova, 2011 Wimbledon Champion Petra Kvitova, Daniela Hantuchová, and Marion Bartoli.

To date, she has won just one ITF title in the singles and three in the doubles. She has yet to hoist a WTA crown. The 20-year old represented the United States at the Pan-American Games last year, taking home silver and bronze medals in the doubles and singles, respectively. In Grand Slam tournaments, the New Jersey-born right hander has taken part in three (US Open, Wimbledon, and the French Open). Her best finish was a third round appearance at SW19 last year. 

With her strong showing against Wozniacki, McHale might just spring a surprise in 2012.

Source:
Wikipedia

Additional Link:
WTA Profile

Vamos, Leryn Franco!

It's not easy juggling an athletics and a modelling career. Leryn Franco, the Paraguayan javelin throw record holder, is a veteran of numerous international championships. Leryn has considerable major championship experience, having competed at the 2003 World Championships in Paris and the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Read: Leryn Franco answers the 10-for-10 quiz

Leryn Franco is not just another pretty face. Franco is dominant in South American circles.

Read: "Track Beauty of the Week - Leryn Franco"

Leryn on fashion model-mode. (Photo from Tetsumo's Flickr/Wikimedia)

On top of her impressive modelling repertoire, Franco has won medals at the South American Championships - from the Youth, Junior, U23, and Senior levels. In the run-up prior to the London Olympics, the Paraguayan star set a new national record (57.77m), en route to winning silver at the Ibero-American Championships in Venezuela.

Source: 
Leryn's Wikipedia profile